Ad Professor Profile picture
Jun 14, 2023 12 tweets 4 min read Read on X
I collect iconic billboard ads.

The 11 best billboard ads I've collected:

1. Nike Image
2. Air Asia, Phuket

Principle: Make the customer swear without swearing. Image
3. Timex

Principle: Turn the competition into an enemy. Image
4. McDonald's Temperature Billboard

Principle: The weather is the most universal talking point. Use it. Image
5. Spotify Data

Principle: Boring data can be a great story if you look hard enough. Image
6. Silberman's Fitness Center

Principle: Show, don't tell. Image
7. Surreal Cereal

Principle: If you can't afford celebrity endorsements, hack your way there. Image
8. The Economist

Principle: Visualize what you do. Image
9. Chipotle

Principle: Optimise for the skim read. And then hit them with the long read. Image
10. McDonalds Sun Dial

Principle: Link your product to habitual events.

Friday by Rebecca Black might be a terrible song -- but it's still getting played weekly 12 years later. Image
11. Abramson Cancer Center

Principle: If you want to reach a specific demographic, use their specific language. Image
I put together the best 25 ads I've collected -- with a breakdown of the principles behind each one.

Get it for free here -> ref.marketingplug.com

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More from @The_AdProfessor

Sep 1, 2025
The 23 best ad copy examples of all time:

1. Fiverr Image
2. BMW

Principle: The Rule of 3

Use the 3rd line to take an unexpected left turn Image
3. Hyposwiss

Principle: Punchline First

Write the punchline: "They like us because of our honesty"

Then write the set up: "We like our clients because of their money" Image
Read 24 tweets
Aug 27, 2025
The most creative social media ads of all time. Which one is your favourite?

1. World Wildlife Foundation Image
2. The Ice Pod

Principle: Meta Marketing

Being out of ideas can be the idea. Image
3. Sunnei

Principle: Multi Tab

Use Multiple iPhone Safari tabs to showcase your product.

Smart. Image
Read 23 tweets
Jul 21, 2025
13 most creative ads from last week and beyond:

1. McDonald's Image
2. Heineken

Principle: Hijack Memes

Instantly recognisable, instant scroll-stopper.

"Not the beers, just a professional yapper." Image
3. Alzheimer's Foundation - Buffering face

Principle: Hijack Familiar Frustration

Take a digital cue we all recognise (like buffering) and recontextualise it to visualise a deeper emotional truth, in this case, memory loss. Image
Read 13 tweets
Jul 4, 2025
Car brands spend over $35B a year on advertising, more than almost any other industry.

Here are the 23 funniest car ads I’ve ever collected:

1. Daihatsu Image
2. Range Rover

Principle: Create an Exclusive Club Image
3. Volkswagen - Precision Parking

Principle: The 10x idea

Think of your new feature -- and then find the 10x absurd metaphor. Image
Read 26 tweets
Jul 2, 2025
The most creative ad copy of all time

21 examples and their lessons:

1. Nike

Principle: 4 Words

"If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter" - Cicero Image
2. Depression awareness

Principle: The Small Text Reveal

Step 1 - Reader sees the big text

Step 2 - Reader thinks it's the sad looking person nearby

Step 3 - Reader sees the small text

Step 4 - Reader realizes Steffen is the person smiling in the distance Image
2. Land Rover

Principle: The U-Turn

Step 1 - Take them down a predictable path (Returns policy)

Step 2 - U-turn to something they didn't predict Image
Read 21 tweets
Jun 30, 2025
Advertisers spend billions every year on social media trying to stop people scrolling...

The 21 best scroll-stopping ads (last one should be illegal)

1. Meshki Image
2. LEGO

Principle: The Intentional Accident

Step 1: Make a mistake on purpose, prompting the audience to look for an explanation

Step 2: Slot in your product Image
3. McDonald's

Principle: Interface Hacking

Use a familiar interface - eg. a Spotify playlist. Image
Read 22 tweets

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